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Archive: February, 2012
- Peter Woolsey, chef/owner of Bistrot La Minette, gets a byline this week with his piece about what it takes to come up with a new menu at his restaurant. There are myriad considerations when developing his bill of fare, but it usually begins with him being kinda drunk.
- Adam Erace goes K-Town in C-Town at the new location of Sammy Chon's, who has two restaurants in Jersey and just broke into the Philly market.
- In Feeding Frenzy: Ramen Boy, Russet, Cup & Saucer, Archie's, Iron Tower and Fish.
- In What's Cooking: Bourbon biz at JG Domestic, moms and margs at Cantina, an inconceivable movie screening and more.
- In his Full Exposure photography column, John Vettese reviews Mary Parisi's "Food," a new show hanging at UArts.
Photo: Neal Santos
Peter McAndrews (Modo Mio, Monsu, Paesano's) is saying "early March" for the rollout of Popolino, a BYO Roman trattoria in what was Lafayette Bistro (501 Fairmount Ave.). Much like McAndrews' other spots focus on underrepresented facets of Italian cuisine, this spot ("commoner" in Romanesco) will express the chef's fondness for the "Quinto Quarto," or offal meats consumed by the lower classes of Roman society while the gilded pimps in Vatican City got all the prime cuts. Those dishes will be accompanied by slightly more recognizable touchstones of Roman fare (carbonara, saltimbocca), plus an option for "Tavole Calde," a table of room-temp antipasti-style choices that allow eaters to put together a personalized plate of salads, marinated veg, cured meats and so forth. They'll also offer the popular "turista" prix-fixe option that originated at Modo Mio; here it'll include antiasti/tavola calde, a pasta, a main and a dessert for $40. Stephen Flis, former server and fromager at The Fountain, will run the front of the house (and cheese program).
McAndrews' other upcoming spot, a pizzeria called La Porta, is reportedly chugging along well in Media.
UPDATE [20feb12]: Barring any unforeseen details, Media's La Porta will open on March 7.
Photo: Drew Lazor
A tipster sent along this shot of a posting at Ramen Boy (204 N. Ninth St.), which just opened last Friday — looks like the brand-new shop has been forced to cut service due to a gas line issue. Owner Nelson Tam says PGW work in the neighborhood inadvertently tripped up the flow to his kitchen, but he hopes he'll get the issue resolved by this weekend. Those looking to drop in should call ahead to confirm they've reopened: 267-687-1388.
View galleryWHERE YOU AT? The biting cold this week has me longing for spring, so I went hunting for it at Mixto (1141 Pine St.), hoping its Latin influence could put a little sizzle in my step. My girl S and I arrived at 5 p.m. and sat at a high-top near the downstairs bar. We languished for a little while before realizing walking up to the bar to order drinks was the right move. Got our mojitos and miniature pinchos (grilled meat skewers) shortly after.
WHAT'S THE SCENE? All the natural wood and brick at Mixto is gorgeous, and in the summer they get their Miami-on-Pine thing going with outdoor seating. (They'll put tables out in the winter if the weather is temperate.) Inside has a good vibe, though, with upbeat Latin music and a menu largely inspired by Cuba and the Caribbean, further speaking to my need for spring. Even as early as 5, quite a few people were already seated for dinner. Most of the crowd looked to be in their late 30s, not a big surprise since the spot has been around eight years in a relatively affluent neighborhood — the clientele's a definite reflection of the stability of the place.
WHAT'S THE DEAL? I was happy we went on a $5 mojito day, since that minted rum drink was what my warm-weather heart was craving. This special rotates throughout the week: five-buck mojitos on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, then $5 margaritas on Tuesday and Thursday. In addition, all Latin beers are $3, and they offer a couple small bites to enjoy alongside. My favorite $2 pincho was the chipotle barbecue chicken. I somehow managed to say no to the $1 empanadas, though it was awfully hard to deny something both fried and priced at a single dollar. All of Mixto's HH dealage runs weekdays from 5 to 7 p.m.
Anne Coll of Meritage (500 S. 20th St.) has taken two delicious, seemingly unrelated foods and combined them to make something beautiful — a Korean short rib corn dog. Coll braises the short rib, which has been marinated in Korean spices, rolls it into a cylinder, batters it, fries it, sets it on a potato bun and garnishes it with kimchi, Korean slaw and gochujang. Coll wanted to tap into the wiener buzz around Philadelphia while still putting her own touch on a classic. The dog, on special nightly, can be yours for $8.
Photo: twitter.com/meritagephl
European Republic, which opened its Old City location (213 Chestnut St.) in '09, debuted a second Philly restaurant at 602 South Street two weeks ago. While Ali Noor owns both businesses, his partner/cousin Naqib (pictured) is overseeing this new spot. They're offering the same wrap- and frite-heavy transcontinental menu that originates at Noor's Long Island location (look out for canned pear nectar, too), though they might slightly pare down their housemade dipping sauce selection on South. (The jalapeño was the favorite of the three sauces we tried; there are many vegan-friendly options among the lineup, too, including BBQ, balsamic and mango chutney.) There are a couple dozen seats in the space. The hours here are the same as Old City: daily from 11:30 a.m. to 10 pm.
Mazel tovs are in order for 943 (943 S. Ninth St.), Pascual Cancelliere's hearty Arge-talian BYOB, which celebrated its first birthday on Friday. To celebrate, Pat's starting Sunday Suppers this weekend. Much like the custom in local Italian-American households, "In Argentina on Sundays you'd eat pasta, but also the meat that's been cooking for hours, be it chicken, pork or beef." Think sauce-braised chicken thighs, short ribs with ravioli or puchero, a "soup-like dish with sweet potatoes, cabbage, carrots and chicken or beef. We add cut-up pasta right to the broth." Cancelliere says the featured recipes will change every couple of weeks, but they’ll always have plenty of Quilmes on hand, a crisp Argentine pilsner poured complimentary on Sundays.
Photo: Neal Santos
Stephen Wagner and chef Sam Jacobson still haven’t decided on a name for their new restaurant coming to 14 S. Lansdowne Avenue in Lansdowne, but the space is coming along nicely, with March as the word for the soft opening.
Wagner has outfitted the former hardware store, more than quadruple the size of his nearby Sycamore, with honey-toned wood planks, box chandeliers awaiting fabric wraps, doing much of the construction and refinishing himself. Repurposed factory windows serve as room dividers, cordoning off intimate seating vignettes that make the lofty space feel cozy, while a massive wooden slab discovered in the basement has become a communal dining table for the restaurant’s back room.
Flanked by a pair of high-tops at which Jacobson will serve casual, off-menu tastings, the open kitchen acts as the room's focal point. Once the last of the hardware is delivered, he can get cooking in the space, putting ingredients to the fire for the Mediterranean menu he's been developing since the summer. Stay tuned to Meal Ticket for the opening menu.
Tripe and tendon junkie Scott Schroeder might give digital shit to vegans, but his South Philadelphia Tap Room (1509 Mifflin St.) and American Sardine Bar (1801 Federal St.) serve some of the best animal-free fare in town. Example: the vegan butternut squash stew headlining the menu this week at ASB. Homey, cold-dispelling and aggressively seasoned with salt, cumin, cayenne and olive oil, it tastes like something in Schroeder’s wheelhouse, but when asked about it, he immediately deferred to his second-in-Sardine-command, Amanda Smith. "I got the idea for the stew from a friend's grandmom's recipe for kabocha squash soup," she says. "I figured it would work just as well with butternut, especially if the squash was roasted first to give it a little more flavor since it's vegan."
After roasting the cubed squash with whole garlic cloves, Smith adds it to a pot of sautéed onions, whole canned tomatoes and dried garbanzo beans. Forty-five minutes later, the chunky stew is ready, garnished with a swirl of quality extra-virgin you can really taste and feel. While most chefs are content to purée their butternut, Smith get extra points for bringing in a different spoonable context. Eat this immediately.
Photo: Courtesy of American Sardine Bar
Mark DiNinno and the crew at Chris' Jazz Cafe (1421 Sansom St.), ever the astute NOLAphiles, will be kicking off crawdad season with a Mardi Gras party next Tuesday, Feb. 21. To drink, they'll have Abita's Mardi Gras Bock on tap and a few others from Louisiana-based brewery, plus $3 Sazeracs and $5 Hurricanes. Thirty dollars will get you all-you-can-eat crawfish, or if you are feeling slightly less ambitious, you can order a bucket of the little guys for $10. They'll also have shrimp gumbo for $5. Stick around until 6:45 to watch the Hoppin' John Orchestra parade down Broad to the Chris' stage for a 7 p.m. show complete with beads and king cake (yes, with the tiny baby in it).
This is just the start of crawfish season at Chris'. They'll offer a beefed-up $10 bucket deal through the spring that includes potatoes and corn, as well as daily specials like spring rolls, mac 'n' cheese and the infamous crawfish cheesesteak. You'll also be able to grab the same drink specials from the party during happy hour throughout the season. Be sure to look out for a nightly $35 crawfish-centric prix-fixe, as well as a mayhaw berry ice cream created by Franklin Fountain just for this crawtastic occasion.
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